10 Possible Reasons You Can’t Get Any Matches On Dating Apps

Whether you’ve spent forever trying to perfect your online dating profile or you threw something together in five minutes, it can be discouraging if you aren’t getting a lot of matches. But before you throw in the towel and deactivate your account, look at your profile and ask yourself if you’re making these common mistakes:

You don’t provide enough info in your bio. Your potential matches don’t just want to see a pretty face — they want to get to know you. While yes, dating apps place a lot of emphasis on first impressions and appearance, don’t rely on your photos to help you get matches, or you’ll find yourself out of luck.

Your photos make you seem one-dimensional. Women want a guy with a lot of personality, whether for one night or forever. If all your photos are selfies or taken in front of a mirror at the gym, you’re sending the message that there’s not a whole lot to discover beneath the surface. Your potential matches will take one look at your profile and feel like there’s not anything more they need to learn about you.

Your first picture is a group photo. Unless someone (hopefully you) in your group photo is stand-out sexy, women on a dating app aren’t going to care enough to swipe through your other pictures to find out which guy your profile belongs to. It’s fine (and actually encouraged) to include a photo or two with your friends, but make sure the first one that comes up features you and only you.

You have a list of restrictions. Practicality suggests that narrowing down what you want right there on your profile could save you and other app users a lot of time, but this is a lot more effective in theory than in practice. Women will see your request of “no girls with tattoos” and feel like they’re items on a shopping list rather than potential partners, even if your restriction doesn’t apply to them.You’ll look a lot less douchey if you do your own work in filtering out the women you don’t want to date rather than suggesting that they should do it for you.

Your profile is generic. Everyone out there has something that makes them interesting, and you should highlight that the best you can. Include more interests than just “spending time outdoors” or “eating good food.” Get specific — mention instead that you’re an avid kayaker or on a quest to find the best burger in the city. Even the most “mundane” hobbies can make you stand out if you put some effort into it.

You come off as being negative. The online dating scene can be frustrating, especially if you aren’t getting any matches or can’t seem to get past a first date. But your dating profile is not the place to vent about this and claim how “women just don’t seem to want a good guy anymore.” Women see this type of negativity as a huge red flag and will pass by your profile instantly. Unleash your dating woes into a journal or with your guy friends if you must, but keep them away from your potential matches at all costs.

You don’t smile in your pictures. The dark, brooding hunk is only attractive as a trope in movies and books. In real life, women want to date a guy who’s happy and easy-going. Save your sexy pout for Instagram, and use your online dating profile to put your best smile forward.

You don’t show off your sense of humor. You don’t have to be a comedian to prove that you don’t take yourself too seriously. A profile that doesn’t suggest any sense of humor makes you come off as bland. A really good joke can make the matches come pouring in, but if you’re not that creative, just think of little ways to make yourself look like a guy who likes to poke fun at himself.

You come off as immature. No one wants to match with a thirty-year-old man who’s trying to relive his college fratboy days. Keep the party boy pics off your profile, and avoid language in your bio that makes it seem like you’re trying too hard to be cool — “I’m here for a good time, not a long time,” is a phrase that should never touch your profile.

You seem cocky rather than confident. Online dating involves you essentially marketing yourself, so of course, you want to show off the best of what you have to offer. But avoid giving off the vibe that you think you’re God’s gift to women. Suggesting to your potential matches that they’ll never find a guy as great as you will encourage some eye-rolls, but that’s about it.